1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a ceramic electronic component and a ceramic electronic apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Traditionally, components, including an integrated circuit (IC) chip and a ceramic electronic component, may be mounted on a substrate. The IC chip may be adversely affected by a flux contained in soldering. To address this issue, the IC chip and the ceramic electronic component may be electrically connected to each other by wire bonding. For example, Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Registration Application Publication No. 5-4451 discloses a stacked capacitor electrically connected to an IC chip by wire bonding.
In recent years, miniaturization of ceramic electronic components has made it difficult to precisely form outer electrodes for use in connecting wires to the ceramic electronic components. One example of a method of precisely forming an outer electrode is a method of forming the outer electrode directly by plating, as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2004-327983.
However, when an outer electrode is formed directly by plating, moisture tends to enter the inside of the ceramic electronic component from between the outer electrode and the ceramic element or other areas. This causes a problem in that the resistance to moisture in the ceramic electronic component is reduced.